Waking Nightmare
by Kereea
Summary: Dick vanished shortly before the Night of the Owls. Two weeks later, Damian finds out why…


A/N: A little three-parter I came up with. Her's part one! Enjoy the drama!

.o.o.o.

Part 1: Captured

.o.o.o.

His father and Drake hadn't given up, so Damian had refused to as well. They would find out what happened to Dick Grayson, no matter what.

Damian knew he owed him. The man had been willing to make him Robin, to let him prove that he could be Robin. And even if his father didn't seem to like him as Robin as much as Grayson had, Damian was still indebted his older brother, since his father never would have made him Robin on his own.

The trail was still cold. They knew it had to do with the Court of Owls and their big night, but they didn't know what. His father and Drake had spent a good deal of time interrogating the remaining Owls, and Damian, Brown, and Cassandra had been dealing with various Talons that still seemed to pop up on the streets, often bringing them to Batman for questioning.

Damian had been put on an easier route tonight, since his father felt his patrols had been taking too much out of him. Damian hadn't fought it, he _was_ tired, and he'd need to be fully awake if a lead about Grayson presented itself.

A ruckus down in the alley, Looked like some muggers. "R to O, muggers, Pearl Avenue. Going to engage."

"Copy," Oracle replied. "Be careful."

"I'll be fine," he said, trying not to sound annoyed at the unnecessary concern. Oracle had been over-tense since Dick's disappearance, and Brown and Cassandra had firmly instructed him to 'play nice' as it were.

He swung down….right as someone else did.

Damian's eyes narrowed. "O, Talon." He grabbed the victim and shoved her out of the alley, barking a quick order for her to "Run!"

The Talon had already killed one of the muggers…odd, but it meant this wasn't a set-up. That was unlikely though, since most of the Talons had been running around near-feral after the Court's defeat.

He grabbed the still-living mugger and knocked him out before going for the Talon, since he didn't need any distractions when fighting someone like this.

He hoped that knowing he didn't need a distraction was why Oracle hadn't told him if backup was coming.

The Talon was fast, and clearly had more energy. Damian skipped any niceties and went right for sucker-punches and stabbing with a Batarang in non-lethal areas.

He kept trying for something crippling—a major tendon or a knock-out—but nothing was working. The Talon kept dodging, far better than most usually did. Damian finally saw an opening and swung a kick straight upwards into the Talon's jaw.

The mask went flying, and Damian couldn't help it. He froze. "No."

It was Dick. How could it be…why would they even want him? How did they get him?

Damian yelped as he dove to avoid a slash to the face.

"R, what's happening?" Oracle demanded. "R!"

"It's…it's N! Nightwing!" Damian said, blocking another slash. "I don't know how, but…the Talon…it's—AH!"

That cut got him in the side, dropping him, and in his shock over it being Dick he'd cried out before he could stop himself.

"Listen to me, Blackbat and Batgirl are on their way," Oracle said, her voice shaking. "They'll be there soon. You just have to hold out."

"Right," Damian said, rolling out of the way of a slash and getting back up. He looked at the Talon…no, at Dick. "You have to listen to me-"

They both twitched at a click. Damian could see who it was. A man with a gun, probably a fellow of the other two muggers, was standing right behind Dick, aiming at the acrobat's back.

Damian saw him pull the trigger. "NO!"

He dove to knock Dick out of the way, and felt bullets and heard Oracle yelling in his earpiece. Then everything went black.

.o.o.o.

Damian's eyes flew open. He was in a shack somewhere. Had he been captured?

He went to sit up, only to find he couldn't move. He started to pray he hadn't somehow been paralyzed again.

"I put paralytics in the painkillers," said a dull voice.

Damian managed to twist his head to the side. Grayson stood there, his eyes oddly dead looking and why was he wearing-?

It all came back to him. The alley fight. The Talon. Dick Grayson. "D-dick…"

Grayson cocked his head and pursed his lips. "You want to call your savior that, little bird?"

Damian shuddered slightly. When Grayson used to call him 'little bird' or even 'little D' there was warmth. This was cold. "It…it's your name…short for Richard…"

Grayson was still looking at him like that. "I saved you."

Damian nodded faintly, unable to move anything else and unsure of how to reply.

"I don't…save people," Grayson said, the frown deepening. "I kill. I've always killed for the Court."

"No…" Damian rasped, his throat going dry. No, Dick hated the very _idea_ of killing. He'd been tricked, brainwashed, somehow made to kill… "No…you…"

Suddenly Grayson was almost on top of him, a hand clamped around Damian's throat.

"I know you," he snarled. "How do I know you?"

Damian couldn't say anything, but the pressure on his neck eased as Grayson looked confused again.

"I know you," Grayson repeated. "Why did I call you 'little bird' and why did I save you?" His hand tightened again, choking Damian. "Why didn't I just _kill_ you?"

Damian stared at him, wide-eyed and trying desperately to breathe.

The grip eased again, and Grayson's other hand came up and stroked Damian's face. "You…were shot. I've seen you shot before…right in front of me…but we've only just met."

"No," Damian choked out. "The Court…they messed with you mind! We know each other! _You're my brother!_"

Dick frowned again. "No. I've been with them my whole life, little bird."

"Then how did you know I've been shot before?" Damian countered. "Shot in front of you?"

"A daydream, maybe…a waking dream," Dick muttered.

"No…no it was real," Damian insisted.

Grayson leaned close and breathed into his ear, "You're confused, little bird. Confused and confusing."

He pulled back. "I owe you, little bird…so you can rest up here."

"I don't have a choice, do I?" Damian asked quietly.

"No," Grayson replied, wandering out into the hall and leaving Damian alone.

.o.o.o.

Damian woke up again, having dozed off from the boredom and numbness. Grayson was in the room again, and Damian's eyes widened—his brother's gloves were covered in blood.

"Why am I still alive?" he asked. This version of his brother clearly had no trouble with killing. Why not him? Why not kill him?

"I want to know why you do things to my head," Grayson replied quietly. "I want to know why I _can't_."

"I told you why," Damian said. "You're my brother…you…you've been taking care of me, for awhile, I mean…" He didn't know how to put it. He'd never been able to properly classify what he felt around Grayson, or how Grayson's attention felt other than 'nice.'

Grayson wandered over, still looking confused. "But…you're not from the Court…and Talons never train other Talons."

"You're not either," Damian protested.

Grayson grabbed his face. Damian felt blood smear across his jaw.

"I was born to be, little bird."

"Y-you were adopted…before they could," Damian choked out. "You're not part of their court; you're part ofmy family!"

Grayson stared at him for a moment, before he suddenly struck Damian, snapping his head to the side.

"Stop being confusing!" he growled, his eyes darkening.

Damian stared at him, afraid. He'd been dealing with feral Talons for over a week. Once they went berserk, they were mindless killing machines that went after everything nearby, and had to be taken down hard.

The five that hadn't been shot by cops, that Damian, Brown, and Cassandra had caught, were all in Arkham. He didn't want Grayson to become like that. "Don't..."

Grayson froze, and grabbed his head.

Damian strained against the paralysis trying desperately to move something, anything, but all he managed was to turn his head when Grayson fell off the cot and onto the floor, still digging his fingers through his scalp.

"Why?" Grayson shouted. "Why…you were…you were afraid…and I didn't like it! I'm supposed to be feared!"

Damian stared. His brother had never liked being feared, it was why most had figured out he wasn't the original Batman when they met face to face. He didn't like scaring people, so it only made sense the real him would be appalled at scaring his own brother.

"Maybe you just don't want me to fear you," he offered. It was all he could manage.

"Want…" Grayson muttered. He smiled slightly, but with the still-dead eyes it was more disturbing than comforting. "I want my little bird to stop confusing me."

Damian countered with, "_I_ want my big brother back."

Grayson's shoulders slumped. "I don't…know who you think I am…but you're wrong…" he stared at Damian again. "But…I…_want_…you here…"

"I noticed," Damian muttered. Clearly getting through to Grayson only came in spurts that didn't always stick.

"Good. You're staying," Grayson said.

Damian watched him leave. This time he forced himself to stay awake by sharply biting his tongue whenever he started to nod off.

He needed a plan.

He had time on his side—now that his father knew Grayson was alive and he and Damian were in the same location, they'd be searching even harder. Grayson couldn't have taken him far with those injuries, and in order to patch Damian up and keep enough painkillers and paralyzing agents on hand, they were probably within a short run of a major hospital, probably one with lax security.

Grayson seemed to remember him somehow. But the memories were fragmented, and clearly warring with the false ones. He just needed something that would be a trigger…something that _wasn't_ his being shot in front of his brother.

Damian wracked his mind for something he could use. Was there anything he'd told Grayson that was memorable, anything he could repeat or bring up?

He supposed the most notable thing he ever said was declaring that he wouldn't let the apocalypse happen unless he said so, but that probably wouldn't work. There had to be something, though.

It finally came to him, and he let himself sleep. He'd say it the first chance he got.

.o.o.o.

He woke up when Grayson trust an apple at him.

"Eat," his brainwashed brother said. He tugged Damian into a seated position—Damian noted that while he had a little more feeling in his neck, probably for swallowing, he couldn't manage much else—and pressed the apple to his mouth.

Damian took a bite. It was slow going. Finally just the core was left and was tossed aside. Now a water bottle was brought to his lips.

"And drink," Grayson said.

Damian drank.

"Good little bird," Grayson murmured, ruffling his hair. It felt so much like the more normal hair ruffling the normal Grayson gave Damian that Damian almost forgot about the brainwashing.

"Do you remember anything?" Damian asked.

Grayson nicked his ear with a sharp nail. "No being confusing, little bird."

"Can I ask you something anyway, to see if you remember?"

Grayson frowned, but nodded, humoring him.

Damian took a deep breath. "We can't be Batman and Robin anymore, can we?"

Grayson seemed to process the question slowly, before his brow furrowed. "Batman…we?"

"Ring any bells?" Damian asked. His brother had often brought that question up when he tried to 'have a moment' with Damian in the past.

Dick seemed to be thinking about it, "You're…Robin…"

"No, really?" Damian drawled before he could stop himself. He received a sharp rap to the head for it.

"You're Robin…you know him…"

"I know you," Damian said, trying to keep the conversation on track.

"No, no…you know Batman," Dick said, his teeth glinting. "The Court sentenced him to-"

"No!" Damian yelled, backpedalling. Shit, shit, he hadn't thought of that!

"I'll get it out of you," Dick purred. "I think part of my little bird wouldn't mind…you like me, after all."

Damian couldn't help it. He started crying. "N-no! No, you won't , you can't! Dick, please, please, no!" How could they have done this…what could have taken Dick Grayson and twisted him into…into this?

A clawed glove carefully lifted a tear off his face and Dick seemed to inspect it. "You don't like that idea, little bird?"

"Dick, no, I'll do whatever you want just…not that!" Damian said. "Not any of our family, please!" He choked over the pleas as the crying continued, he couldn't stop, not now, now it was all too much.

"Family…" Dick muttered, flicking the wetness off his glove. "No…no family for me…but I have you…"

Damian didn't know what to make of Dick's expression, it was hard to make out between the ebbing tears and those dead, dead eyes and he didn't know if Dick still felt anything for him or just saw him as a possession or what. "Y-you can keep me. I won't leave! Just don't hurt them! Please!" This Dick, this Talon…he could kill any of them, even Batman, even Cassandra, they'd never be able to fight him properly, too afraid of hurting their own…

Dick hummed quietly, seeming to think that over. "No running."

"No," Damian agreed.

"You'll be mine," Dick added, sharp glove running thought Damian's hair with just enough gentleness not to make his scalp bleed. "My little caged bird…"

Damian hoped it was just the stress that made his assure himself that frankly at least it was better than what his mother would do if she got him again. "I'll stay. I'll stay."

Maybe if he did, he could find the real Dick Grayson again.


End file.
